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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: spring · snap · leaves · firm · cold · bat · calf · hand

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. hand — in cards
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. firm — decided
  6. bat — the animal
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. snap — to click
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — of water
  15. cold — not warm
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. hand — help
  18. spring — the season
  19. firm — a company
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. firm — steady
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. calf — of the leg

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com